TRADEMARK IN RUSSIA

Trademark in Russia Moscow Patent Service offers the full range of legal services related to trademarks in Russia including trademark search, trademark registration, trademark renewal, recordal of assignment and license agreements, recordal of changes to applications and registrations, as well as representing clients in courts. We do our best to represent our clients' interests in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.

Requirements for trademark registration

According to the legislation of Russia, designations that are similar with or identical to the trademarks previously registered or applied for registration in respect of similar goods and/or services cannot be registered.

In order to determine whether there are any similar or identical registered trademarks or filed trademark applications that may be opposed to your mark at the examination stage, please use the online trademark search tool which is available on our website or contact us to order professional trademark search.

The online trademark search in Russia

Information and documents needed for filing

Prints of the trademark;
Name and address of the applicant;
List of goods and/or services in accordance with The Nice Classification;
Certified copies of priority documents, if priority is to be claimed (may be submitted within three months from the filing date);
Signed Power of Attorney (legalization and notarization are not required).

Trademark registration procedure

A formal examination of a trademark application is conducted within approximately 1-2 months after filing and checks the availability of required filing documents and payment of filing fee. If the application meets filing requirements, corresponding notification is issued, after which the application passes to substantive examination, which is conducted for approximately 5-6 months. On condition that a trademark meets the requirements of protectability, the decision about registration is issued, which means that the official registration fee should be duly paid to the Trademark Office. The certificate of registration is forwarded to the applicant within approximately 1-2 months after payment of the official fee. In case the substantive examination finds any obstacles for registration, a provisional refusal in trademark registration is issued, which may be appealed within further 6 months.

The smooth trademark registration procedure usually takes 7-8 months in Russia.

Foreign applicants must be represented by a registered Russian trademark attorney

Possible oppositions and cancellation requests

Any interested party may file opposition against registration of applied designation during the whole examination period up to the issuance of decision of substantive examination.

Interested parties may also file cancellation requests after trademark registration, namely:

cancellation based on relative grounds may be filed to the Board of Patent Disputes within 5 years from publication;
cancellation based on absolute grounds may be filed to the Board of Patent Disputes within the entire period of validity of the trademark;
cancellation based on non-use may be filed to the Court for Intellectual Property Rights. The grace period is 3 years from registration.

Trademark validity and renewal

A trademark is valid for 10 years from the filing date and can be further renewed every 10 years. It is possible to apply for trademark renewal within 12 months before expiry of validity term. There is also a 6-month grace period which allows applying for renewal after the deadline upon payment of a stipulated fine. Reinstatement of a lapsed trademark (after expiration of grace period) is not possible.

Required documents: signed and stamped Power of Attorney.

Frequently asked questions

Can I file a trademark application to Russia by myself?
According to the Russian legislation, only legal bodies and self-employed entrepreneurs that are registered in Russia may file trademark applications by themselves, foreign applicants should obligatory be represented by trademark attorneys.
What are the grounds for refusal in trademark registration in Russia?
A trademark is usually refused in registration if it is similar with or identical to earlier filed or registered trademarks in respect of the same or similar goods/services, as well as in case of lack of distinctiveness or misleading character of a mark.
How can I conduct a trademark search prior to filing an application?
You may order a service of a professional search or use our free online trademark search tool, where you can conduct a search by entering mark name and class number. Please consider the following information when checking the mark name:
— different variants of spelling of the word should be checked (HERMES — ERMES, HERMEZ, etc);
— parts of the mark should be checked together and separately (MAXINORM — MAX, NORM);
— spelling of the word should be checked both in Latin and Cyrillic (Poker - Покер);
— meaning of the word should be checked in other languages (Dream — Мечта in Russian);
— synonyms and semantically similar words should also be checked (Big father — Big dad).
Can a multi class trademark application be filed in Russia?
Yes, according to the legislation of Russia you may file trademark applications with indication of any desired number of classes of the Nice Classification. Still please note that the amount of official fees depends on the number of classes.
What is the cost of a trademark registration?
The cost of a trademark registration in Russia depends on the number of classes in which the registration is required. Please contact us for more detailed information
Can a trademark registration procedure be accelerated in Russia?
Yes, a trademark registration procedure may be accelerated by ordering corresponding service in the Trademark Office. Thus, the Trademark Office will examine an application and issue a decision in a short time frame, namely within approximately two months. In case of positive decision, the official registration fee is to be paid, after which the registration certificate is issued.
What is a non-use cancellation?
According to the legislation of Russia, a third party may file a request for cancellation of a mark that has not been used by the holder or a representative for any period of three consecutive years after registration.
How many times can a trademark be renewed in Russia?
Trademarks in Russia may be renewed every 10 years as many times as needed upon payment of corresponding fee.